No nomination filed for Assembly poll on first day today

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, January 11

On the first day of filing nominations for the coming Assembly elections, none of the candidates submitted his/her papers today. The slow start to the otherwise highly volatile election battle is attributed to the fact that many of the parties have still not announced their candidates from the constituencies in the city. The candidates can file their nominations till January 18.

While the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party have announced their candidates from a few seats, the BJP is yet to field its candidates from all the four constituencies: Amritsar North, Amritsar East, Amritsar West and Amritsar Central.

Out of the city’s five constituencies, four fall in the BJP’s share. The alliance partner, SAD has fielded its candidate from the Amritsar South constituency only. Even the SAD has not announced its candidate from the South constituency so far. Its MLA Inderbir Singh Bolaria has shifted his allegiance to the Congress. Even the Congress has not announced its candidate from the seat. The AAP has taken the lead by fielding Dr Inderbir Singh Nijjer from the seat. With only the AAP candidate in the field, the election battle in the South is yet to gain momentum.

The Congress, too, is lagging behind as it has announced candidates from only two constituencies: Raj Kumar Verka from the East and OP Soni from the Central constituencies. It is yet to finalise the names of the candidates from the South, the Central and the West. Only the Aam Aadmi Party has announced its candidates from all the five constituencies in the city.

Political observers feel the election battle would heat up once all the parties announce their candidates. In the South constituency, the Congress is expected to field Inderbir Singh Bolaria who had left the SAD only recently. However, the other Congress aspirants from the seat are trying hard to scuttle Bolaria’s chances. In the East constituency, where Dr Navjot Kaur Sidhu, who left the BJP to join the Congress, is expected to be fielded. However, the old Congress aspirants from the seat are not much happy with her joining and that in itself explains the reason behind the delay in the allocation of seats.